New Women's Health Campaign Launched

Show Your Love is a new national campaign developed by the Preconception Health and Health Care Initiative (PHHCI), and Healthy Start of Southwest Florida is helping to get the word out to help women prepare for healthy pregnancies.

Launched today, Valentine's Day, the campaign's message points out that if a woman plans to have a baby, she can show love for her child by first loving herself, and by adopting healthy habits well before becoming pregnant.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), preconception health is the health of women and men during their reproductive years. Preconception health focuses on women taking important steps now to protect their health and the health of the family they may want to have sometime in the future. These steps include working with their doctors to control and treat medical conditions, (e.g. diabetes and high blood pressure), quitting smoking, drinking less alcohol, becoming physically active, and making healthy food choices.

As part of the Show Your Love campaign, the Initiative has developed a series of educational materials for women including video and radio public service announcements, posters, a checklist of healthy habits, as well as online ads and a kit for organizations interested in supporting the campaign and helping to spread the word about the importance of preconception health.

Healthy Start of Southwest Florida is working with the PHHCI to spread the campaign's messages and seeks to reach as many women of child-bearing age as possible. Outreach events, social media, and various media outlets will be used to spread the word about these important health messages.

The Show Your Love campaign focuses on women during their childbearing years, between the ages of 18 and 44. The campaign is designed to speak both to women who are currently planning to become pregnant, as well as those for whom pregnancy may not be in their immediate plans.

The PHHCI is focused on promoting healthy habits among women of childbearing age. Members represent national, state, and local organizations, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), March of Dimes Foundation National Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition, the National Healthy Start Association, state health departments, and local affiliates of national organizations.

For more information on the Show Your Love campaign visit the website at www.cdc.gov/showyourlove or call Healthy Start at (239) 425-6920.

This story is contributed by a member of the community and is neither endorsed nor affiliated with Naples Daily News.